Cut Back On Snacking

How Research Says You Can Cut Back On Snacking

You have to get in on this super-easy trick.

How Research Says You Can Cut Back On SnackingYou have to get in on this super-easy trick.

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We've told you before about how you can cut back on mindless munching. And now, a new study from the journal Appetite found another way: Just think about how over-snacking will impact your health next year. Yep, that's all!

For the study, researchers asked 95 volunteers, ages 22 to 66, to read a packet about the health benefits associated with avoiding snacking for either one year or one day. The researchers also asked all of the volunteers to report on their "eating self-efficacy," or how likely they were to be able to resist food in social and emotional situations. Then, the researchers told them to go about their weeks and come back seven days later. When they did, the researchers asked them how much they'd snacked in the previous seven days.

Now, here's the interesting part: There wasn't a significant change in snacking levels in those who reported high levels of "self-efficacy," meaning these people likely were already better at choosing what to eat based on their own needs and desires, rather than various social pressures. But it was a different story for those who'd originally reported lower levels of self-efficacy. In that group, it turns out that those who'd read the packets about the health risks over a full year reported snacking less than those who'd read the "daily" packets. (Of course, it's worth noting that these results are just self-reported, so it's also possible that having people be aware of the long-term results of snacking can just impact their truthiness, rather than their actual snacking behavior.)

Researchers say that the descrepancy likely comes down to psychology. Thinking about the effects of over-snacking for a year makes the health threat feel like a bigger deal than thinking about the effects of over-snacking for a day, prompting you to make smarter choices.

Can't seem to stop snacking no matter what psychological tricks you bust out? That's OK; just stick with healthy snacks that will help you get the nutrients—and sustenance—you need.